—and the payment processors and financial institutions, there is a broad consensus that against the backdrop of a rapidly changing marketplace, Interac must also change. Our current association and cost recovery structures are outdated and are not sustainable. Since 1996, we've operated under a consent order that is tremendously constraining across all facets of our business. Throughout the world, it has been recognized that associations tend to be slow and ponderous, moving at the pace of the slowest. We are clearly at a competitive disadvantage.
The debit products that Visa and MasterCard are putting into the market today are similar to the Interac product, whereby your bank account is debited when you make a purchase using your debit card. These companies have tremendous experience in gaining market share rapidly at the expense of domestic providers. Through the debit wars in the United States this is evidenced, and we are seeing the same type of strategies being employed here, as they aggressively work to sign up issuers, acquirers, and merchants.
You heard directly from the acquirers that this was happening. They are receiving financial incentives to develop and market these products and applications and are now facing penalties if they do not. Time is of the essence. Change needs to happen, and it needs to happen quickly.
Arriving at this point, we are in discussions with the Competition Bureau regarding the consent order and changes to our internal structure. Our governance structure needs to change, and we need to generate organic capital for reinvestment in the business and to be governed independently from our participants.
Third, preserving Interac requires greater investment in infrastructure and innovation, and this means some changes to the pricing system for Interac products in a manner that meets the needs of the business but also respects our legacy and ongoing strategy of being a low-cost provider.